Open the door and you are greeted by the illuminated AMG door sill. The red ambient lighting is more clearly visible when the sun isn’t high and lends the cabin a brilliant aura. The interior of the SLK is typical Mercedes work with appreciable amounts of AMG play as well; and it’s not some badging and highlights. For starters, the red leather upholstery screams of its sporty character and no-holds-barred approach to stylish open-top motoring, as does the carbon trim abound. The seats are quite supportive and can be electrically adjusted extensively, but there’s only so much room and after a while, it can get quite cramped if you’re a six-footer, or taller.
The AMG steering wheel wrapped in alcantara and leather, and the polished aluminium paddles mounted behind the steering wheel feel just right, and it’s almost like they feed off your pulse, getting the rate up as well. The instrument console is almost entirely analogue, a good sight these days. Black dials, white lettering and red needles seem just perfect in this day and age. The big twin dials for the speedo and tacho, with smaller dials for temperature and fuel gauges are simple, but look smart in a sporty, no-nonsense way. The LCD centre screen displays various other information and can be controlled by the stalk on the left of the wheel.
Look away from the immediate sights and you notice the larger, full-colour LCD screen giving you information about the air-con and current radio station, among other things. The Harmon-Kardon Logic 7 surround-sound system is perfectly complemented by the COMAND Online multimedia system with navigation. Bluetooth connectivity and USB media interface apart, you also get a DVD player and 10 GB of storage space. However, let’s not forget: this is an AMG, and that’s not the kind of sound most buyers would be interested in.
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